It has been said that the older we get, the faster time seems to go. That is because the relative length diminishes with age - so one year to a one-year-old is equal to his whole life but to a 100 year old, it is just one per cent of its length. Now that I am more than two thirds of a century old and in my last quarter, I notice how quickly Monday turns into Thursday and January becomes September. And yet I also am noticing how slowly things are happening on a national as well as local level.
On a national level, we are experiencing one of the slowest job recoveries in history after suffering one of the most rapid job loss in almost a century. The Congress has gone years without finalizing a budget and must rely on continuing resolutions to keep the government running. The government has yet to come up with a new, simple and fair federal income tax for individuals and businesses even though everyone agrees we need one and even though I have recommended the most obvious solution. We see little progress being made to improve our K-12 education though we have been waiting for it for decades. Poverty is still with us and growing and we are still in Afghanistan after all this time money and human suffering.
But I see it most vividly on a local level, here in San Francisco.
Every day I walk around my neighborhood for about two or three hours. I do it to exercise my dog and myself while able to enjoy my wonderful area. I live in one of the most beautiful neighborhoods in one of the most beautiful cities in one of the most beautiful states in one of the most wonderful countries in the world. And I enjoy one of the best climates as well.
Walking with my eyes wide open always noticing my environment, I can not help but pass the same home improvement projects for what seems like years. There is one project that has lasted 12 years. There are some that have been ongoing for three years and have stopped before being completed.
When I notice a project being worked on, I am always impressed by how few workers there are and how little work they are doing. I watched a group work on a project casually for a four month period. It turned out to be a bathroom remodel. It would take a week or two with four guys working eight hours a day, but it took four months with a couple of guys working a few hours for a few days a week, for 13 weeks! There are four projects within a block of my home that have been ongoing for years. (It seems to be an unwritten rule among contractors that if any noisy work needs be done, it must begin at 7 a.m. including on weekends and holidays, even if it’s the only work done the day.)
Remember that almost 100 years ago, it took 18 months to build the Empire State Building, what was then the tallest building in the world. How could it take months to remodel a bathroom or kitchen and years to do an entire house?
I might have a few of the answers.
Several of the long-term projects might be contractor-owned taking the pressure off to hurry. Some funders might be having financial difficulties, not being able to raise the additional money needed to continue and finish the job. Other contractors might be having issues with the inspections which have set back the work and added to the cost.
I believe much of the delay is caused by contractors taking on new assignments during the work. In order to hook the new clients, the contractor must pull workers off the ongoing projects to start the new ones before the clients change their mind. When staffing falls to a trickle of occasional workers, it seems that the project never quite ends. Some large project have two workers working a few hours a day as though time did not exist. It’s like watching people in slow motion mode or like watching workers in Italy just before siesta.
In the meantime, many of these ongoing projects require parking spaces normally relied upon by neighbors without garages. (A single garage space can easily cost $3,000 a year to rent). Ironically, many of the projects involve adding garages. The Bureau of Building Inspectors authorizes and the Department of Public Works issues “No Parking - Tow-Away Zone” signs for the anticipated duration of the project. If the project ends early and the signs are no longer needed, they are not removed, but languish, keeping drivers from parking in the unused spaces. DPW, with its five inspectors, cannot keep track of all the signs and has better things to do but to remove unneeded signs.
What can be done?
I have some ideas. It starts with the permit approval process. The process should include an agreement of how long the project should take and its required staffing. The permit applicant should also be helped estimate the cost of the project and be expected to show that the needed funds are available. The contractor should be held accountable to maintain sufficient staff working full days and to stay on schedule to complete the project.
The “No Parking” signs should be issued with large deposits for the agreed upon work period. The contractor should be motivated to immediately remove the signs when no longer needed by getting a refund for the unused days and avoiding a large fine subtracted from the deposit if the signs are not immediately removed. Members of the Department of Parking and Traffic should be authorized to remove expired or otherwise unneeded signs.
I have always been lucky with contractors. Each of mine had staff who did the job well, did it quickly and were gone. The contractors had several similarities. They were licensed and had a staff of workers who were paid for full time, year round employment. The workers were here legally and spoke English fluently. They knew their job and had not learned it a few hours before. The workers didn’t leave to work another job. They knew that they had to finish mine first. I paid most of the bill at the end when the work was done.
Never pay before the work is done! It is too much of a temptation for the contractor to forget to finish or to take his time doing it. Avoid charming contractors that have surely kissed the blarney stone. I found that the more charming the contractor, the worse the work.
In the meantime, if there is a project in your neighborhood that seems to have overstayed its welcome or has gone but left its signs behind, you can call and complain. In San Francisco dial 311 and tell them the problem. They will follow through and get action.
I’ve got to get back to my kitchen remodel to finish it before my yet unborn grandchildren retire.
